MP suffers online abuse from trolls
She reveals many female politicians are targets
Rutherglen and Cambuslang MP Margaret Ferrier has revealed she is one of dozens of female MPs to receive abuse online.
The SNP politician has been subjected to misogynistic comments since she was elected in 2015.
And to highlight the problem, she has shared just some of the abuse with the Reformer.
Some refer to her as a “witch”, while another describes her as “vile” and “hateful”.
Most are commenting on her without tagging her in posts, but others are direct responses to tweets she has put out.
Although some of the tweets have since been deleted, others have been left for the public to view.
Ms Ferrier was speaking after a survey from the BBC showed an overwhelming number of female MPs had experienced online threats or abuse.
Some reported death threats, with more than half of those questioned saying they had experienced physical threats.
More than a third of the UK’s 195 female MPs took part in the research.
Of these, two out of three said they felt “less safe” following the murder of the Labour MP Jo Cox last summer.
A third of those responding said they had thought about quitting as a result.
Despite her own experiences, Ms Ferrier said she had never thought of standing down.
And she reckons other MPs actually receive worse than she does.
She said: “It’s okay to disagree with my political viewpoint. But unfortunately I think it’s easy for some people to forget that politicians are people too.
“The personal, and often misogynist, abuse I receive can never be justified.
“The BBC survey of female MPs reflects my own personal experience, and I know of some who have received much worse abuse online than I have, including threats upon them.
“The vast majority of my constituents who engage with me do so in a civil way, whether they agree with my political stance or not.
“The small minority of people who chose to hurl abuse online will certainly not stop me from doing the job I was elected to do.”
Ms Ferrier’s office manager, Derec Thompson, revealed they hide much of the worst abuse from her
He said: “Margaret’s job is incredibly demanding, and one that requires an enormous amount of focus.
“To allow her to get on with the job at hand, the staff monitor correspondence and social media for abuse, and take appropriate action as necessary.”